Well I never! I was told this evening of a thread about Friday 13th Folk Club. How heartening it was to read such supportive stuff, incidentally who re-named it Harrogate Folk Club? It was fun reading people asking questions and others answering on my behalf. They could have asked me and saved a lot of time, but I thank the ones who understand the situation and spelt it out clearly enough. However I will just say two things.
    One is the mildly obsessive "apathy" strand. I did not use this word, one which seems to have hijacked the thread somewhat. So you know what was actually said I will copy the contents of my "Obituary" mailshot at the end of this outpouring. If it seems very first person that is because I effectively do all the behind-the-scenes work. Roy won't mind me saying this as he is the first to admit that his main contribution to the club is in an "on-the-night" capacity.
    I realise that we are not alone and that folk club interest is waning in other places. I have a few theories about why this is the case and what follows is only one part of it.
    This second point is my own obsessive thread. It links a well known national folk magazine editor with a well known witch. I believe the simultaneous rise of folk festival support and decline of folk club support both received a tremendous boost from the editor of a so called folk magazine. One which only noticed that Britain had a tradition of its own after The Living Tradition sprang up as an antidote to this trend driven organ. Issue after issue would bang on about how folk clubs were no longer one of those trends and how it was time to move on and let them die. If a lot of people read a magazine it is fair to assume that a large number of them will respect its editor's views. It will therefore follow that his words will have much influence. If you think this is to accord him too much power I will make the following analogy: I for one believed the Sun's crowing headline (It was the Sun wot won it) when they claimed to have elected Margaret Thatcher. I hate to credit this vile publication with anything, but their readership is probably the biggest single block vote in Britain. Mention of this lady brings me to the link I referred to at the beginning of this paragraph. When she kept banging on about there being no such thing as society, and pouring scorn on anyone who begged to differ, she, like magazine editors, had enough of a following to ensure that her assertion came to be widely accepted.
    I think I'd better stop here, those of you who receive The Ramblings of an Old Codger will think I am trying to compete!
All the best,
             Ray Black

FRIDAY 13th FOLK CLUB OBITUARY NOTICE

Hi All,
       Friday 13th Folk Club will cease to exist after Christmas. I worked as hard as I could to create what I envisaged a good club to be and achieved only a third of that ideal.
    My feelings about a good folk club is that it should serve three basic functions, all of which we seemed to manage at one time, but not any more. They are:

1. PARTICIPATORY: The Performers' and Listeners' evenings should give a chance for people to share songs and banter with an audience and with each other. As these have not been very well attended I assume my opinions are not generally held ones.
2. PROVIDING A PLATFORM FOR LESSER KNOWN TALENT: Giving gigs to talented, but not-yet-famous artists should be a very strong feature of any folk club. Every time we try this we lose a lot of money by failing to get a decent sized audience. These performers are stuck in the world's smallest vicious circle: They can't get a gig 'til they get a name, and they can't get a name 'til they get a gig.
3. BRINGING "BIG NAMES" TO TOWN: This works a treat, we are already more than half sold-out for Vin Garbutt in December and well on the way to being completely sold-out for Spiers and Boden in November.

    Unfortunately "big" gigs are only one aspect of the club and not enough for me to go on giving up so much of my time for. I do not make any money from the club, I do it for love. Put in maudlin terms, I feel as if my "lover" has let me down.

    The Tuesday session at the Tap and Spile will continue, if interested there is a CD of one of our session for sale in the pub, price - £3.50.

    We will be recording one of some of our regular local performers which will be available in the future.

    On Monday we are involved in the Charm acoustic evening at The Blues Bar. It would be good if we could pack the place so full of non-smokers that the usual "puffers" can't fit in. Admission is free and we will start playing at 8.15, if you get in early we can beat the "foggies" to it.

    Don't forget the other gigs we have on between now and Christmas, come while you still can and help us to have a really good final season.
All the best,
                Ray